Universal Music Group (UMG) led the music industry in negotiating with streaming platforms to protect the value of its artists’ work and its own publishing catalogue. Now, in a stand-off with TikTok, it is again leading the industry in a fight against AI-generated noise. Paul Loudon considers these ongoing negotiations and the attributes that put UMG at the forefront of this exciting sector.
9 minute read
With the era of cheap money now firmly in the rear view mirror, Roy Leckie, Executive Director, delves into the implications of today’s higher interest rate environment and the benefits to companies of adopting a conservative approach to debt financing.
5 minute read
After a period of extraordinary growth, the luxury sector is showing signs of slowing. An inevitable normalisation or evidence of something more fundamental? Lindsay Scott considers the long-term outlook for the industry and some of its most illustrious exponents.
10 minute read
Executive Director Roy Leckie shares his thoughts on recent market developments and highlights the enduring importance of company fundamentals.
1 minute read
“Artificial intelligence” and talk of its ground-breaking capabilities have been around for decades. Almost every company talks the talk around generative AI. But which are the companies making genuine advancements with the technology and how is it going to be transformational for their business?
7 minute read
Executive Director Roy Leckie discusses some of the current trends in markets, and highlights the need to focus on strong company fundamentals in what remains a testing backdrop.
5 minute read
Our research approach is multifaceted. It includes desk-based research, qualitative and quantitative analysis. Discussion and debate amongst the Research team is another critical element. So too is engaging with companies and other experts to inform our understanding and challenge our assumptions.
6 minute read
Microsoft’s announcement of an AI-powered search engine and browser has raised questions for Google and its dominance of search. Despite these developments, we believe Google is more than well-equipped to fend off Microsoft’s challenge.
12 minute read
While Japan might be set to break free from its deflationary shackles, our positive view on a variety of leading Japanese companies derives more from our bottom-up fundamental analysis than from hopes about the country’s economic transformation.
5 minute read
Shareholder proposals are a growing feature of proxy voting season. While in many ways we welcome this increased shareholder scrutiny, too often what appears a reasonable objective on paper fails to withstand closer inspection.
7 minute read